How I developed Cricket Craze!

I was about 10 years old when my father took me to Jalandhar where my Chacha Ji ( Sdr Inderjit Singh) was working in the Financial Commissioner’s office of Punjab. We went there to celebrate ‘Namkaran’ ceremony of my cousin Jagmohan Singh.

Sdr Inderjit Singh Chacha ji in his youth

My Chacha Ji gifted me a brand new cricket kit containing a midsize bat, matching wickets and a ball from one of the many famous sports shops for which the city was world famous. This was how I was introduced to this beautiful game of Cricket.

I was so much crazy to play cricket, that me and my friends will play with our Moms ‘Washing Sotta’ and a small inexpensive wooden ball. We went on playing for fun first during SD High School Panipat and then at Arya College Panipat

Preet Mohan Singh warming up near his hostel room.

The cricket kit worked for me and my neighbor hood kids like Mehnga, Inder, Sampuran, Nathu, Meshi, Chann, Banna, Bala, Tulsi and a few more friends from distant streets also came to play this new sport in the back of our house. This was a no man’s land and soon it acquired the name of ‘Peetu da ground’. At other times this ground was used for marbles, Gulli Danda, Stappu, Pithoo Garam, Chhupa Chhupai, and hitting hard others with a rubber ball etc. During the week days, the students from my neighboring Govt Primary School Ward 10 Panipat, will be brought by their teachers to memorize tables by shouting vigorously. My mom will curse them for the noice and  the dust spread by sitting mats. This is the school where all kids were used to get education from. Subsequently my Dad acquired a part of this ground.

My Dad Sdr Vasdev Singh in the same ground later turned into kitchen garden

The so called ‘Peetu da Ground’ we played was later converted into small kitchen garden and subsequently purchased by my Dad. Gobind Ram a neighboring Riksha pullar was asked to maintain the same.

My friends often jokingly compared me to A G Milkha Singh. I was no where near to that top order batter who played for the country. However I played up to college level and club level cricket where a Ranji Trophy player Devi Chand Worrel was our coach. I am to proud to say that I captained my college team also.

Amritsar Govindsingh Milkha Singh was an Indian Test cricketer. Milkha Singh was a left-handed batsman and an occasional right arm medium pace bowler. He came from a famous cricketing family which also produced A. G. Ram Singh and his more successful brother A. G. Kripal Singh. The family was settled and played for Madras.

A G Milkha Singh



In our days, Sikhs always played Cricket with their turban on. It’s only after Bishan S Bedi from Amritsar came on the scene to play cricket, that he started using a small size of turban known as ‘Patka’.